Metal working – Method of mechanical manufacture – Electrical device making
Reexamination Certificate
2002-04-03
2004-12-07
Vo, Peter (Department: 3729)
Metal working
Method of mechanical manufacture
Electrical device making
C029S865000, C029S897320, C007S107000, C072S409140, C081S438000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06826831
ABSTRACT:
This invention relates to methods and apparatus for servicing a telecommunication junction box having a plurality of fasteners, wires and electrical connections.
More particularly, the invention relates to a method and apparatus for accessing and crimping a wire in a telecommunications junction box.
Telephone systems in the United States and other countries entail the use of relatively complex wiring. Telecommunication housings or junction boxes which contain many strands of telephone wires are placed in cities, towns and suburbs throughout the United States. Telephone company technicians open these junction boxes and connect, disconnect, crimp, and otherwise manipulate the wire housed in the boxes. Each wire typically includes an electrically insulative coating except at points along the wire which are stripped to expose the bare metal wire.
Telecommunication junction boxes have a variety of names, including cross box, ready access point, pedestal, SNI (standard network interface box on the sides of homes), and demarcation point (typically in large buildings). Wires in the junction boxes typically are attached to binding posts, punch down blocks, screw terminals, or other electric terminals.
A large incoming feeder line with fifty pairs of wires connects to the pedestal. A plurality of smaller outgoing buried service lines extend from the pedestal to a plurality of homes or other building structures. Each buried service wire includes in its center two to six pairs of wires. Each pair of wires serves as one telephone line. A buried service wire extends from a pedestal to the SNI in a telecommunications box. The SNI (standard network interface) is the demarcation point at which telephone company service lines end and connect to telephone lines or wiring in a home or other building structure.
The two to six pairs of wire in each buried service wire are surrounded by a rubber insulator. The rubber insulator is surround by a layer or jacket of wound copper. The jacket further protects the two to six pairs of wire and serves as an electrical ground. Another layer of insulation is formed over the copper jacket to protect the copper. At times, it is necessary for a telephone repairman to cut through the layer of insulation formed over the copper jacket.
When a telephone company technician is accessing through a junction box door
17
a wire
15
in the junction box
16
, he can use the tool
10
illustrated in FIG.
1
. Tool
10
includes handle
13
and neck
11
pivotally attached to handle
13
by pin
12
. The distal end of handle
11
includes hook
14
. The technician uses hook
14
to engage wire
15
and pull wire
15
free from a bundle or group of other wires in box
16
. Hook
14
may be utilized to pull a second wire (third wire, etc.) out from a bundle or group of wires. A wire cutter can be utilized to cut the wire
15
in half, if desired.
A “button”
100
(
FIGS. 7 and 8
) can be utilized to crimp or “splice” together two or more wires. Button
100
includes a cylindrical opening
109
which slidably receives cylindrical member
102
. U-shaped metal member
106
includes rows of electrically conductive metal teeth
107
. Member
106
is fixedly attached to inner surface
110
of member
102
. Member
106
includes outer cylindrical wall
105
and circular upper surface
101
. When surface
101
is depressed in the direction of arrow G, member
102
slides into cylindrical opening
109
. If wire ends have been slidably inserted through cylindrical openings
104
so that the ends are positioned under member
102
, then when member
102
is pressed into opening
109
, teeth
107
penetrate the insulation covering the wire ends and contact and electrically interconnect the wires. A variety of crimping or splicing buttons are known in the art. By way of example, 3M Company produces various SKOTCHLOK (TM) connectors which are used to splice together wires without having to strip off and remove the insulation from the wires at the points at which the wires are being spliced.
The tool
20
shown in
FIG. 2
is typically used to squeeze, or crimp, member
102
after button
100
is inserted between gripping members
26
and
29
and handles
22
and
24
are manually displaced about pivot point
25
in the direction of arrows J and K to displace members
26
and
29
in the direction of arrows L and M to force member
102
in the direction of arrow G into opening
109
in housing
103
. Button
100
rests against and is contacted by support surface
27
,
30
and
31
when handles
22
,
24
are manually displaced in the direction of arrows J and K to force member
102
into housing
103
.
The foregoing procedure for manipulating wire in a telecommunication junction box has been used many times by telephone technicians. One disadvantage of the procedure is that it requires one tool
10
to remove a wire, requires another tool to cut the wire, and requires yet another tool
20
to crimp button
100
on a wire or wires. This requires a telephone technician to pick up, manipulate, and put down several tools while attempting to manually hold on to and manipulate one or more wires, a plurality of tools, and a crimping or splicing button
100
. It would be highly desirable to provide an improved method and apparatus for crimping or splicing wires.
In addition to crimping tool
20
, other tools typically carried by a telephone technician are illustrated in
FIGS. 9 and 18
and include needle nose pliers
93
, can wrench
98
, a screwdriver
97
with a small flat head, a screwdriver
95
with a large flathead, a sni tool
94
, a Phillips screwdriver
96
with a “star” head, a pair of scissors
280
, a sheath or cable knife
281
, a flashlight
282
, a punch down
283
, bits
285
and
286
utilized in punchdown
283
, a wire pick
284
, and a can of dog spray (not shown).
A bolt
290
(
FIG. 19
) is used to open and close access doors in a telecommunication junction box. The head of the bolt includes an aperture with an internal hex surface
291
and a dimple
292
formed in the bottom of the aperture. A sni tool
94
is used to engage and turn bolt
290
. The sni tool
94
includes an external hex surface shaped to conform to and be slidably inserted in hex surface
291
. The distal tip of tool
93
includes a detent
217
(
FIG. 14
) shaped and dimensioned to conform to and fit over dimple
292
.
The can wrench
98
is equivalent to member
98
A, except that member
98
A includes a hollow or opening
227
extending far into member
98
A. In a conventional can wrench
98
, the opening
227
is dimensioned to extend into wrench
98
only about as far as opening
223
in wrench
98
A. A conventional can wrench is operated by a telecommunication technician only by utilizing internal hex surfaces shaped like surfaces
221
and
226
to loosen and tighten hex nuts.
It would be highly desirable to reduce and simplify the tool kit carried by a telecommunication technician to service a telecommunication junction box.
Therefore, it is a principal object of the instant invention to provide an improved method and apparatus for servicing a telecommunication junction box.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3947905 (1976-04-01), Neff
patent: 4448097 (1984-05-01), Rocca
patent: 5450775 (1995-09-01), Kozak
patent: 5904080 (1999-05-01), Anderson et al.
Nguyen Donghai D.
Tod R. Nissle P.C.
Vo Peter
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